Sarah Liegmann: “If someone had told me I would be a champion in boxing this quickly, I would have said they were crazy.”

Sarah Liegmann: “If someone had told me I would be a champion in boxing this quickly, I would have said they were crazy.”

By Lewie Laing

Fresh from her first senior professional world title win, unbeaten Sarah Liegmann (10-0) spoke to FightPost about riding the wave of becoming world champion at just 22 years old. While the fire burns to move on to the next fight and keep busy, Liegmann has instead opted for calmer waters as she balances boxing with working towards a university degree.  

Fitting a demanding educational course around training and professional boxing, travelling to and from America, and still trying to live a life with a balance is demanding and while the pressure of so many different facets could be too much for some, Liegmann would not want it any other way.

At only 22, the former amateur kickboxing champion is clear about what comes first in her life and is disciplined when it comes to sticking to the plan, even if that means being away from friends and family. 

“I feel great, obviously a big win last time, winning a World Championship title, all the sacrifice in the end has worked out. I wanted to fight again and have a stay-busy fight before a title defence but I am going to take some time off. I am at university studying psychology. Sometimes you want to rush things as an athlete but I am enjoying some time with family and friends, I have a lot to do for university so sometimes it’s good to slow down. When I have time off from university, I always go to the USA to train. Sometimes it depends on money or time, I can study alongside boxing, sometimes it makes sense to stay in Germany, but before my last fight, a big fight, I trained over in America. 

“Boxing is and always will be the number one in my life. I am young now, I have the time to be a professional athlete at this time. I can study in my thirties and forties, there is plenty of time for that. Now because I have just fought, university is the focus but before my fight boxing was the most important. I enjoy the time alone going to the USA. Normally my mother is with me, for a few weeks but when I am on my own, it gives me time to focus on myself. When I am here in Germany I feel bad for saying no to my friends when they ask me to do things because I have to train. It is easier for me to be in America and focus on one thing. “

Having started in a kickboxing background, Liegmann only got into boxing to improve her boxing ability but like many of us, whether amateur or professional, whether you compete or just box for health and fitness, once you don the gloves, it’s hard to take the back off. It speaks volumes about Liegmann, who won 17 amateur kickboxing titles and was top of her craft, who would choose to step into boxing in order to improve further. It did not take long before she turned professional and won her first title in just a handful of years.

Looking at current champions is a way for Liegmann to measure and pace herself on the journey to reach her goals and ambitions both in and out of the ring, knowing time is on her side and everything will come at the right time. There is no rush to call out current world champions for Liegmann, the way some up-and-coming prospects are doing. Such a methodical and logical approach to her career makes it difficult to believe the unbeaten professional is only 22, seeming wise beyond her years. 

“I switched to boxing because I was very good with my leg kicks and wanted to improve my boxing and my punching. I started boxing, one session per month. I was the best in kickboxing, it was frustrating starting from scratch, but once I started having amateur fights, my experience and strength from kickboxing helped a lot. My trainer had contacts, and he got in contact with Claressa Shields’ manager, he was impressed with my kickboxing background. I came to the USA after finishing college, and I have been professional since. I am in love with boxing, I want to stick at this. Winning the WBC Youth title was a good feeling, five years after starting boxing, coming from a kickboxing background. If someone had told me I would be a champion in boxing this quickly, I would have said they were crazy.

“I am pretty young, 22, I’m still a baby really. Amanda Serrano is 35, I have a lot of time. I don’t want to rush, but my goal is to become undisputed. That is a lot of work and there’s a lot of time but I am pretty sure I have what it takes to achieve that. I have both long-term goals and short-term goals. I know fighting Serrano now, I would not win, you have to be realistic. I want to grow as a boxer, become older, and find my own way, I want to improve. When I spar with girls in Florida who are older, I can tell I don’t have the strength yet, I need to grow. You need to be real with yourself, what’s the next step, don’t overdo yourself or take fights just for money. It will be nice to get the money but to work for the legacy, this is also important.”

Liegmann was part of the groundbreaking and history-making, all-female boxing event back in 2022, headlined by Savannah Marshall and Claressa Shields. Liegmann secured a win over seasoned professional Bec Connolly and was privileged to be part of such an iconic card. It is hard to believe that in 1998, just twenty-six years ago, women’s boxing was still banned in the UK before pioneer Jane Couch managed to secure a professional license. The sport has grown continuously since and has never been more popular than it is now, something Liegmann knows is good for all involved, fighters and fans alike. 

While many may have felt the pressure of being part of such a historic event, Liegmann would not feel right without such pressure in her life, having grown up in the pressure cooker of the lonely world that is combat sports. While the bigger the fighter, the more pressure there is, Liegmann understands people will come and go in life depending on a win or a loss, and that losing is something that we all experience over the course of life. It is learning how to adapt and overcome while being comfortable in those hard times that creates resilience and strength within all of us. 

“Only girls to sell the first all-female card in history, to be part of that was amazing. Seeing this and being a part of this makes me realise I going in the right direction in this sport. It is very nice to see women’s boxing growing. Seeing how it has changed, the big women’s fights, a lot more attention, it’s good for every female fighter. I think three-minute rounds would be even better for the sport. We as women want the same treatment and the same pay as men. I live the sport of boxing so I want to be able to live from the sport of boxing.

“I think it can be pretty scary when I don’t have the pressure in my life, it feels like something is wrong. I think I have learned to live with the pressure and grew into it as I’ve been doing this for so long. But of course, the bigger the fighter, the more pressure there is. When you win everyone is your friend but when you lose, you are alone. I know a lot of people say they don’t think of losing but you have to acknowledge you may lose, how you will react to that and how life may change. If people you thought were friends leave your life, you have to be ready for that, not everyone is there for you through the hard times. You have to learn to be comfortable within yourself. “

Liegmann understands you don’t always get out of boxing what you put in and that the financial benefits of this game are far outweighed by the sacrifice and time given to it for the majority of fighters. It is the pressure of boxing, the mental and physical effects, finances, wins, losses and legacy that drive Liegmann outside of the ring, studying to become a psychologist in the hopes of using not only her educational knowledge but also her experience as an athlete to help other athletes in life. When you can bring two passions together and want to do right by those around you in similar positions, only good can come from this. 

Liegmann is also trying to change the outdated perception of boxing and what people think boxing is, experiencing first-hand the shock of those who do not associate boxing with women and education, something less with a dirty past and links to crime, blood and guts. In actual fact, that view is far from the full picture of what boxing can do for people, you do not have to fight, and you do not have to get punched in the face to reap the benefits of boxing as Liegmann knows all too well. 

“The human brain and the soul, I have always been very interested in all that stuff. Also with sport and the pressure on athletes, that interests me. When I was younger I had a slight eating disorder, because of gaining and losing weight for kickboxing, I got more into losing weight which wasn’t good. I had friends who were anorexic when I was younger and I managed to get into boxing. I wrote a piece in school about anorexic athletes and I was so interested and that helped me heal at the time. I’m not sure where I will go because there are so many ways you can with psychology but let’s see where it goes. Working with fighters and other athletes would be something where I have the experience, I wouldn’t be someone who just read a book, I can relate to other athletes. That is also something I could think about. It is so important, when you are the best in the world, with all the pressure and publicity, all the negativity online these days, you have someone for nutrition, a boxing coach, a strength and conditioning coach, you also need someone for the mental side but that some times gets forgotten.

“Some people think boxing is just punching each other in the face but it is much more than that. I was told that I don’t look like a fighter because I don’t have a broken nose. It took me back a little. It isn’t all blood. Boxing is sometimes linked to crime which isn’t good but overall boxing does a lot for people and the narrative of boxing is old. You can go to university and not have a broken nose and not be involved in crime and still be a boxer. When I started kickboxing, I was very calm and shy, But I am now totally different. It gives you self-confidence, and the mental strength to get into the ring on your own and fight another person, it takes a lot. Some people aren’t able to do that. Boxing and kickboxing, it is just as much mental than physical. After a stressful day at work, hitting the bag is a great stress release.”